“Enough! I am Bartholomew, the Beneficent, the Great and all-Powerful! Everything in the Church is mine to Dispense!” I say, where is Toto when you need him?

The main newspaper of the Turkish opposition, Dzhimikhuriet (The Republic), carried an article by Deniz Berktay entitled “The Killer of Orthodoxy”, in which he severely criticises EP Patriarch Bartholomew for his interference in the internal affairs of other countries “from Cyprus to Estonia, from Jerusalem to the Ukraine”, actions that create foreign policy problems for the Turkish state. We contacted the author and asked him to explain his position.

Mr Berktay stated, “The Patriarch of Istanbul already interfered in the internal affairs of the Ukraine during the time of the so-called ‘Orange Revolution’, and he actively supported one of the factions in this domestic political affair. The Turkish state does not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries. Well, Patriarch Bartholomew has one position, and the Turkish state has another (The patriarch is a Turkish citizen and ranks as a civil agent: ND). If he is a member of international political association, he can support any particular political group that he wishes as a member of that organisation. However, in the Ukraine, he deals directly with the leadership of the state; therefore, he must represent the Turkish state. But, this counts as foreign policy activity, which can lead to a quarrel with Russia, the Ukraine, and with other states. This is inadmissible. Even now, our embassies and consulates are being picketed.

On the other hand, if Turkish religious or public organisations were to interfere in the internal affairs of other states, causing conflicts in those countries, then, it is only fair that foreign organisations could interfere in our internal affairs, something that no one wants at all. We observe the freedom of conscience, of course, but, we would like your Orthodox patriarch to consult with Turkish leaders first [before acting]”.

There is something that Bart does not wish to talk about. He is not only bound by the Holy Canons, the EP is bound by the strictures of the Treaty of Lausanne. For example, the Patriarch of Istanbul must be a Turkish citizen, and he receives certain privileges from the Turkish state. If he violates the conditions of this treaty, the Turks have the right to boot him from the Phanar. Apparently, he is working very hard at getting on the wrong side of the Turks (not a wise move, that) and he is doing so on several, not just one, fronts.

In short, Bart is not the “Beneficent Oz, the Great and all-Powerful” that he claims he is. He is, rather, a pathetic little Balkan ecclesial princeling with an overactive streak of ambition. Oh, by the way, “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain”.

The Unity of the Russian People (Mikhail Khmelko, 1948). It is time for all honest Russians, from all the Russias, to stand in defence of our Lord Christ. Yushchenko spat at him tonight. You know what blasphemers deserve!

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko is confident that there shall be a united “Local Church” in the Ukraine, as he said Saturday evening in the course of a formal observance in St Sofia in Kiev dedicated to the 1,020th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia. “I believe, that as the truth exists, next to a revived (sic) Ukrainian state there shall be a revived (sic) Ukrainian church, to be the support of its people and of the greater unity of the Orthodox world”, Yushchenko said. He emphasised that the presence in the celebrations of Patriarch Bartholomew and the leaders of the Local Churches “are God’s signs and God’s blessings”. Yushchenko thanked the guests for their valuable spiritual support. “We note the 1,020th anniversary of the Baptism of Kievan Russia as a celebration of the spirit, a great day in the life of Christianity and in the life of the European world”, he said.

In turn, Patriarch Bartholomew stated, “the church is a sign of unity. Let us then greet one another with the joy of this holy event” (the 1,020th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia: Interfax), the patriarch said. According to our Interfax correspondent, the grounds of St Sofia in Kiev were decorated with flowers, and candles in glass candlesticks were placed on the green lawns. More than 900 guests were invited to the formal affair. Amongst the attendees were Arseny Yatsenyuk, the chairman of the parliament, Raisa Bogatyrev, secretary of the National Security Council and Defence, and the first president of the post-Soviet Ukrainian state, Leonid Kravchuk, along with other public figures.

TWO figures were missing from this little soirée. Of course, His Holiness Aleksei and His Beatitude Vladimir were not invited. They’re only the canonical bishops with jurisdiction, after all. Black Bart should have refused to attend if the canonical bishop was barred. He came anyway, and that speaks volumes for his treachery. Yushchenko is not only a khokhol, he is a STUPID khokhol, for he did not invite Yuliya Timoshenko! He’s going to rue that one! She’s gonna get even, and she’s gonna get her pound of flesh… Former President Kuchma and Viktor Yanukovych, the leader of the patriotic opposition, were also kept out. Gee… shades of the old Soviet Union!

Yushchenko showed himself in contempt of the church tonight. He hates the church’s proper bishops and does not invite them. He invited a foreign hierarch who cannot, under the holy canons, even come to the Ukraine without the permission of the ruling bishop, which I remind all objective people, he refused to secure. Viktor Yushchenko put a dagger to the throat of Christ tonight. I shall not be silent, nor shall I be bullied by autocephalist schismatics such as “Fr Nicholas”. Sir, I shall not allow you and your ilk to rape the Church of Christ. You shall do so over my dead body.

We must clean the icon of Christ of the filth spewed at it by Yushchenko and Bart. I am ready to defend the Church against its sworn enemies, are you?

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Orthodox believers gave an enthusiastic welcome to Patriarch Aleksei of Moscow and all the Russias upon his arrival in Kiev on Saturday after a flight from Moscow, according to our Interfax-Religion correspondent. The streets adjacent to the Kievo-Pecherskaya Lavra were choked with people waiting for His Holiness to arrive. When the Patriarch’s motorcade came into view, the crowd began to chant loudly, “Aleksei… our… patriarch!” The crowd held religious banners, white-blue-red Russian tricolours, and the black-gold-silver flag of the Romanov imperial house, and the majority of those present held large portraits of the patriarch. Some held posters reading, “Autocephaly, the road to hell!”, “One Triune Russia, One Indivisible Church!” (“Triune Russia”: the union of Russia, the Ukraine, and Belarus), and “Aleksei, Our Patriarch”.

When Patriarch Aleksei left the car and walked to the gates of the monastery, people threw flowers at his feet. As the bells of the monastery rang continuously, the patriarch walked through the grounds of the Lavra followed by the members of the Holy Synod of the MP, and bishops and clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church/MP. Applause spontaneously erupted, people stood on tip-toe trying to catch a glimpse of His Holiness, many took photographs of the delegation, and a woman gave Patriarch Aleksei an enormous bouquet of white flowers. A sustained ovation broke out when the patriarch ascended the steps of a platform set up in the square in front of the monastery’s main cathedral. The Patriarch and Metropolitan Vladimir Sabodan of Kiev and all the Ukraine (the First Hierarch of the UOC/MP) served a molieben asking the intercessions of all the saints glorified in the Kievo-Pecherskaya Lavra. On Saturday, Patriarch Aleksei came to Kiev to take part in celebrations honouring the 1,020thanniversary of the Baptism of Russia. At his arrival, he called all Russians and Ukrainians to preserve the unity of the Orthodox faith. “We are here so that amity and unity would be amongst us”, His Holiness said as he deplaned from his airliner at Kiev Borispol Airport. He called all Orthodox believers to “cherish this great gift of unity, to treasure our unity as fraternal Slavic peoples”.

Interfax! Fire this unpatriotic dweeb! They not only weakened the intensity of this piece, they used language appropriate to a Galician Uniate, not a true-blue red-blooded Russian Orthodox Christian. “Moscow-controlled Ukrainian Orthodox Church”, indeed! It’s the Ukrainian Orthodox Church/MP, get it right! It’s spelled “Kiev”, not “Kyiv”, and no amount of Galician Uniate temper tantrums is going to change that fact. To top it all, it wasn’t only botched, but incomplete, yet again. Click here for the original botched English translation. When I was reading the original Interfax translation, I noticed that the tone wasn’t right. It had the feel of papist propaganda, such as Asia News. Talking about that tainted source, it claims that Bart’s won the whole banana; it’s only a matter of time before there’s an “autocephalous” “Ukrainian” church, and how Bart & Co hate nationalism. I see… that’s why they appoint a Greek who doesn’t speak the local lingo to be “bishop” in Estonia! It had all the earmarks of one of Ioannis Zizioulas’ nasty little missives. I tell my RC friends, truly, don’t be taken in by such rubbish. All it’ll do is tick us Russians off immensely, and Benedict’s little scheme of meeting Aleksei will go down the chute, permanently.

His Holiness Aleksei Mikhailovich Rediger (1929- ), Patriarch of Moscow and all the Russias, First Hierarch of the MP, a modern apostle of Church Unity. May God preserve him!

Patriarch Aleksei of Moscow and all the Russias made a plea for all the peoples of Russia, the Ukraine, and Byelorussia to treasure their spiritual unity as he arrived in Kiev for the celebration of 1,020th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia. “It’s necessary for us to cherish this great gift of unity, to treasure our unity as fraternal Slavic peoples”, Patriarch Aleksei said at a press conference after his deplaning at Borispol Airport in Kiev. “We’re here so that amity and unity would be amongst us”, he noted. Then, Patriarch Aleksei greeted all Orthodox Christians in the Ukraine and all the people of Kiev with the joy of the anniversary of the Baptism of Russia. “Without prompting, our thoughts pass to that event that happened 1,020 years ago, the baptism of the Kievans in the Dnepr”, he said. His Holiness recalled that 20 years ago the Millennium of the Baptism of Russia was celebrated, and, after reflecting on the last 20 years, it is obvious to everyone that church life has radically changed, and multitudes have come to the faith. He thinks that it necessary for all of us to thank the Lord for the fact that the Slavic peoples who were baptised in the common Kiev font preserved their spiritual unity. The patriarch emphasised that most Orthodox believers in the Ukraine, in Russia, and in Byelorussia realise the significance of this anniversary of the Baptism of Russia. “I’m glad that on the feastday of Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Prince Vladimir that I’m going to help serve the Divine Liturgy at the Kievo-Pecherskaya Lavra, and I’ll thank the Lord for all His Graces and I’ll pray that God’s Blessings would be with all of us so that we could preserve the most precious gift of all, our Holy Orthodox Faith”, Patriarch Aleksei concluded.

It’s important to note who was NOT at the airport to greet His Holiness. Yushchenko wasn’t there. That khokhol was squiring Bartholomew about town, showing him a portrait of the convicted OUN murderer (and SS-Sturmbannführer) Roman Shukhevich, saying (God, help us!) that such people were the “salt of the earth”. Two world-views are colliding in Kiev. One is that of Prince of this World, as typified by Yushchenko and Bartholomew. Yushchenko glorifies those who voluntarily joined the Nazi cause, whilst Bartholomew bows in adoration before the Pope of Rome. Which is worse? Do you wish to be hung or shot? One is still dead… Both wish to create an artificial “church” that’s to be founded on the basis of violence and subservience to the state and to Rome. The other is that of the Church of Christ, of the Church of the Assembly of All the Saints that Shone Forth in the Russian Land and the Assembly of the New Martyrs of the Atheist Persecution. Grand Prince St Vladimir of Kiev was the first amongst all the Russian Saints, and Metropolitan St Vladimir of Kiev was the Protomartyr of the Atheist Persecution. Therefore, we’re going to win through in the end, I think, although we may have to pass the fire in order to do so. There are those who call His Holiness “Drozdov”… I remind them that their “leader” is a deposed cleric who was anathematised for sufficient reason, and the only reason he proclaimed himself “Patriarch of Kiev” is that the MP had the good-sense to reject him. Things are not proceeding well, but there’s a while yet left to go in this enterprise. The Cossack bodyguards of Metropolitan Vladimir should watch over His Holiness with care, for there are many unstable sorts amongst the Orangies and Uniates. God protect our Holy Patriarch. He’s stepped knowingly into his enemies’ citadel. That takes GUTS.